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Seeking Photography Advice for August Newbie, Lilyflower

Hi, My basic question is: what is the latest advice for photographing jewelry? I'm sure I couldn't find better experts. Thank you all for helping me get started and your words of encouragement! I check group messages periodically. Now for an update. Since I started on my beading adventure I've had a wonderful time with a little frustration thrown in (but that's life!). I've taken some beading classes, purchased more beads than I can afford and lust after others. Occasionally I read the "12 step program" on Dr. Sooz's site.... Actually I've even designed some jewelry. Besides drooling over the beads, I love working with my hands and the creative part of designing. I'd like to be able to photograph jewelry and have experimented with a friends digital camera. It's time to buy my own. Now for some specific questions:

  1. Which camera do you recommend? - fairly recently purchased
  2. How many megapixels do you recommend? Assume photos will be sent over the internet or posted. And how close do you have to get to the jewelry?
  3. What features do you think are essential?
  4. How do you light your jewelry? And how do you avoid glare?
  5. Is there one backgroud material (under the jewelry) that works in general or do you change the color, etc. depending on the piece? (When I was experimenting, it seemed that different pieces were better with different colors.)
  6. Anything you wish to share!!! OK that's enough or I'll need a 12 step photography program, too!! Thank you for any advice. Special best wishes to those of you struggling with illness and difficult husbands. Lilyflower snipped-for-privacy@theworld.com
Reply to
LilyFlower
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Reply to
Barbara Forbes-Lyons

Answers inline....

Reply to
Kandice Seeber

Wow, Kandice, that was so generous -- time and trouble. KLUNK

~~ Sooz To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. ~~Joseph Chilton Pearce

Reply to
Dr. Sooz

LOL Obviously not enough time to use a spell checker. All the typos are kind of hilarious!! All kidding aside - when I have the time (like now when I'm sick) I like posting info here and elsewhere. It's only when I am super busy that I tend to quiet down. :)

Reply to
Kandice Seeber

Well, I have a Digital one. A Minolta Dimage Z1 - the Z2 is better and more recent, but don't get the Z3. It can take "Macro"shots from under 2 inches so you can really get good close up detail. You'll need a tripod though and good lights.

MEgapixels, 4.0 and above I'd say, but then that will blow up to around

10x15inches at the photo printers (The BF works at a photo lab). For just posting on websites you can proberbly get away with less than 2.0megapixels. I use my camera on it's lowest setting on both resolution and size to get pics like on my website
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I believe it's around 0.75megapixels at that point. Get as close as you can with the whole piece in shot. Then take close ups of the detail.

A Macro feature. And a tripod screw. And the ability to run it from mains power. And a big memory card.

I'm saving up for modelling lights. they're expensive though. I would never use flash for this sort of thing. Actually, I would use a Macro ring flash, but the macro ring flash for my camera is around £300 ($600). At the moment I use natural daylight from a sunny bay window. I get a slightly grey background to all my pictures though. Saying that, I'm quite liking the grey background, it's the most neutral colour and sets of the colours in the jewellery well. It also makes the silver really sparkly. I don't usually get glare (I don't take pictures in full sunlight) but would proberbly edit it out using corel draw or getting the Bf to use photoshop for me.

A mid grey will go with anything. Seriously, why do you think so many jewellerys shops display on grey velvet? White is good for taking photo's as it reflects all the light back. Black is a sod for taking photo's on. I like what the nice lady at

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does with her pictures, she takes them against driftwood. I've seen other people hang their jewellery in trees and do forth to get nice backgrounds. I myself use foam core board from an art shop. It's shiny and white and you can make holes in it for earrings and things.

Well, I think I've covered most things. As I said, the BF works in a photo developing lab / camera shop so if you've any specific uestions that you can't find answered on the net then feel free to email. Also, you might want to actually GO to a camera shop. Take some background, and some jewellery and ask to try out their cameras! They shouldn't mind!

Charlie.

Reply to
Charlie

Reply to
LilyFlower

Yeah, it was super-helpful and I'm glad you posted because I was thinking, "Oh, should post but... too... tired!"

This line:

"Also, I use incandescent blubs shining through white fabric."

was just begging for a joke, but my mental capacity wasn't up to producing one... where's Candace when you need her?

-Kalera

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Kandice Seeber wrote:

Reply to
Kalera Stratton

LOL - I totally didn't even think about that!! :)

Reply to
Kandice Seeber

I know this joke involving a white sheet..sorta naughty, but fun. My brain ain't up to it, either:)

Reply to
~Candace~

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